films and cinemas

NOT: Alice in Wonderland

March 12, 2010 ⋅ 6 comments

Today our resident film guru Yalin brings us his view on Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. While I quite enjoyed the 3D effect and admired Alice’s beautiful dresses, I did feel that it lacked the magical wonderment of the original Lewis Carroll book, with its predictable good vs [...]

HOT: Marvellous March in Melbourne

March 7, 2010 ⋅ One comment

I’m all for comfort food, opaque tights and scarves (I think it’s a reaction to growing up in sunny Queensland) – yay for Marvellous March!
Marvellous March is also the name of a handy little booklet produced by That’s Melbourne with details of the big events around Melbourne that will make you love autumn. This is [...]

HOT: A Single Man, Rivoli Cinemas, 200 Camberwell Road, East Hawthorn

February 25, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Colin Firth won a BAFTA a few days ago with his role as George Falconer in A Single Man. If you watch this film you’ll see why.
The first foray of Tom Ford, uber-fashion designer, into film is an intense and elegiac work about the nature of love, loneliness, repression and the small poignant moments in [...]

HOT: The Prophet (Un prophete), Cinema Nova, 380 Lygon St, Carlton

February 18, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

I had no idea what to expect from The Prophet (Un prophete) – I only knew that the French film that had received lots of praise, including a Best Foreign Film Oscar nomination.
“Oh no” I thought as I bit into my choc top and the blood splattered on screen, “It’s going to be two hours [...]

HOT: The Last Picture Show, Rooftop Cinema, Level 6, 252 Swanston St, Melbourne

February 4, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

During summer in Melbourne, we’re lucky enough to have a number of outdoor cinema-going options – including one screen unexpectedly perched on a city rooftop.
Rooftop Cinema is hoisted up six flights of stairs at the top of Curtin House and the faux lawn, stripey deckchairs and twinkling city lights create an unforgettable movie going experience. [...]

HOT Spots Summer Edition 2010 and Summer Serve

January 24, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

It’s summer. The sun doesn’t go down till 9pm. Everyone is feeling relaxed and refreshed. So why not spend some time discovering, or rediscovering, the great things Melbourne offers in summer?
If browsing through MEL: HOT OR NOT doesn’t provide you with enough inspiration, pick up Hot Spots Summer Edition 2010, a cute booklet produced by [...]

HOT: The Road

January 21, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Today we have a guest post from our regular movie reviewer, Yalin, on the highly anticipated movie, The Road. Thanks Yalin!
If you’d like to become a guest-blogger too, just send me an email.
What distinguishes The Road (based on Cormac McCarthy’s novel) from other post-apocalyptic films is John Hillcoat’s focus on the realistic issues that humanity [...]

HOT: Up in the Air, Classic Cinema, 9 Gordon St, Elsternwick

January 15, 2010 ⋅ One comment

Up in the Air does the almost impossible – it makes redundancy humorous.
Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) is a corporate downsizing gun-for-hire who flies around the country firing employees for bosses who are too cowardly to do the dirty work themselves. He’s a smooth operator, full of pretend concern and oft-repeated platitudes but with just the [...]

NOT: It’s Complicated

January 14, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Today, another guest post from our film reviewer Yalin. Thanks!
If you’d like to become a guest-blogger too, just send me an email.
I am a little confused with It’s Complicated, Nancy Meyers’ latest film. It’s blessed with great acting from Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, but the overall feeling is fake and almost irritating.
Meyers [...]

HOT: The Men Who Stare at Goats

December 26, 2009 ⋅ One comment

Say hi to my new guest blogger Yalin! Born and bred in Istanbul, matured (mostly) in the US and now London-based, Yalin is going to giving us the northern hemisphere scoop on upcoming movies before they’re released in Australia. Yalin’s a movie buff who used to write long term papers during university on the characters [...]